ZAQHWAN STUNNED SEPANG IN LATE DRAMA
Race 1 of the MSBK1000 A category at Round 1 of the MAM Malaysia Superbike Championship 2026 at PETRONAS Sepang International Circuit saw Muhd Zaqhwan Zaidi from Malaysia seizing victory in dramatic fashion after a chaotic final lap.
Zaqhwan made a strong start but was quickly shuffled back as Mohammad Adenanta Putra of ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM and Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman of AMI SUZUKI MOTORSPORT took control. By Lap 2, Azlan was leading at 272km/h, with Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin of HONG LEONG YAMAHA MALAYSIA emerging as a key contender, while Adam Norrodin of AMI SUZUKI MOTORSPORT and Zaqhwan remained in close pursuit.
The battle intensified through the mid-race stages, with multiple lead changes between Azlan, Kasma, Adenanta, and Adam. Fastest laps tumbled—2’23.907s from Kasma, 2’22.366s from Azlan, and 2’22.124s from Adenanta—as the front group stayed tightly packed, reaching speeds of over 285km/h.
In the closing laps, the fight reached its peak. Adam briefly took the lead on Lap 9 before being repassed by Adenanta, setting up a five-rider showdown heading into the final lap.
Drama struck immediately when Adam crashed at Turn 1, followed shortly by Adenanta, handing the advantage to Kasma, with Zaqhwan right behind and Azlan in third.
On the final corner, Zaqhwan made his move. Timing it to perfection, he overtook Kasma and powered to the line to win in 23’56.849s, just 0.071s ahead. Kasma settled for second, while Azlan completed the podium after a race-long fight at the front.
Zaqhwan said, “Actually, in the first lap I didn’t feel confident. I was 50-50 and thought maybe I could only finish around fifth because it was hard to reach the front group. But in the last four laps, things got better. I caught up step by step, and I believed I could fight for the podium. I stayed patient, watched for their mistakes, and in the final lap, I took the opportunity.”
TOP 5 FASTEST – RACE 1
1. MUHD ZAQWHAN ZAIDI – MALAYSIA (23’56.849s)
2. KASMA DANIEL KASMAYUDIN – HONG LEONG YAMAHA MALAYSIA (23’56.920s)
3. AZLAN SHAH KAMARUZAMAN – AMI SUZUKI MOTORSPORT (23’57.574s)
4. ADAM NORRODIN – AMI SUZUKI MOTORSPORT (24’16.171s)
5. MOHAMMAD ADENANTA PUTRA – ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM (24’28.856s)